NSA documents released by Edward Snowden have revealed years of false statements by the government, the capture of calls and emails from every citizen, the monitoring of tens of millions of people globally, the surveillance of world leaders including close allies, and the perjury by National Intelligence Director James Clapper. It has caused the Obama Administration — after denials of violations — to admit violations of U.S. laws and abuse of surveillance powers. Now General Keith Alexander, NSA director, says enough. We simply cannot stand any more disclosures of wrongdoing so Alexander wants to see actions taken against the media to prevent further disclosures.
The NSA surveillance has triggered the greatest diplomatic crisis in decades. The Obama Administration is promising reforms and investigations as if these were acts committed by some alien power. Alexander however has returned to the root of the problem in his view — and that of many politicians. It is the media. They are the ones who are continuing to disclose abuses. Stop the media, stop the disclosures. Stop the disclosures, stop the questions. It is so simple and Alexander cannot understand why we cannot come up with a way to shut the media up. He raised the question in an interview with one of the few remaining media sites viewed as friendly, the Defense Department’s own “Armed With Science” blog:
“I think it’s wrong that that newspaper reporters have all these documents, the 50,000 – whatever they have and are selling them and giving them out as if these – you know it just doesn’t make sense . . .We ought to come up with a way of stopping it. I don’t know how to do that. That’s more of the courts and the policy-makers but, from my perspective, it’s wrong to allow this to go on.”
Alexander’s hostility to the free press is so distortive that he actually views the press as “selling” secrets by informing the public of surveillance abuses by his agency. This would of course mean that the Pentagon Papers were “sold” by the press and should have also been stopped.
Just to be clear, the “wrong” can cannot be allowed to go on is the exercise of a free press. Just as other civil liberties have been discarded by the Obama Administration in the name of fighting terrorism, it is now time to curtail the free press — just another demonstration of loyalty demanded from citizens by their government.
Goebbles would be proud…..
“If you tell a lie big enough and keep repeating it, people will eventually come to believe it. The lie can be maintained only for such time as the State can shield the people from the political, economic and/or military consequences of the lie. It thus becomes vitally important for the State to use all of its powers to repress dissent, for the truth is the mortal enemy of the lie, and thus by extension, the truth is the greatest enemy of the State.”.
General Keith Alexander, the director of the NSA, speaking “from the heart” before a Tuesday hearing of the House intelligence committee…
Is that like Dick Cheney speaking from the heart? Darth Vader sharing about his feelings?
I hate to play the devil’s advocate but:
“I think it’s wrong that that newspaper reporters have all these documents, the 50,000 – whatever they have and are selling them and giving them out as if these – you know it just doesn’t make sense . . .We ought to come up with a way of stopping it. I don’t know how to do that. That’s more of the courts and the policy-makers but, from my perspective, it’s wrong to allow this to go on.”
As Sheldon Cooper from the Big Bang Theory might say: “In what universe is saying… I think it’s wrong for the MSM to have a plethora of C-L-A-S-S-I-F-I-E-D US intelligence Community documents some sort of malfeasance or dereliction of duty for General Alexander? How is saying “someone OUGHT” to do something about it a violation of his Constitutional oath? Is it wrong to legally represent a CIA officer Russian spy in court of law? No… it’s allowed… but why would you do it knowing the details of what he and his son did to our country USA? (sorry for the vague cryptic reference but the guilty party knows what I’m talking about).
On 16 October 2013 Keith announced his resignation form NSA. Yes his “fruit salad” medals indicate a brilliant military career. He was a man who excelled in his tradecraft – espionage. Yes he may have overreacted post-9/11 with the domestic spying he ordered but it was necessary to identify the REAL culprits. However, he was never allowed to reveal that. It wasn’t the usual suspects.
Yes Blouise he was with Patreaus at West Point and will probably now do the “chicken dinner” circuit like all the rest. That’s where all great men and women go after an action-packed career in the Belt Way. Just look at the thief of Baghdad, L. Paul Bremer. He stole almost $9B US from Iraq CPA money and split among his “rowdy friends”, and now HE’S on the chicken dinner circuit too.
Let’s look at this, this way: Wasn’t it better to deal with the devil you know rather than the one you DON’T know? If you think NSA was you’re personal problem under Keith just wait until you see who replaces him. If you think Winston Smith was bad wait until you meet Vice Admiral Michael Rogers. He’s from Chicago so Barry will simply love him. At least he’s USN (in 10th fleet) and not Army like Keith. He looks amazingly like James Woods (the actor).
Can’t be all that bad… we’ll see I guess…
gbk:
seriously, how many reporters are there in the United States?
One isnt really much of a data set.
gbk:
yep, it was a geezer nap. Judith is a very nice pillow on which to lay one’s head. She filled it full while I was slumbering, speaking sweet somethings.
I awoke with the feeling that I have seen this all before, maybe in a former life as a shop keeper across the street from the Sterneckerbräu brewery.
I am sure it was just a dream though.
This is why the famous Dictators of the last century have shut down the free press by killing reporters and editors. And then…..they go after the Universities. This is not going to end well.
National Security Director, General Keith Alexander sure does look pretty in his army costume with all the colourful little ribbons in his “fruit cocktail” pinned to his chest.
Which ribbon is for destroying the US Constitution and braving unfriendly reporters with conspicuous gallantry?
“The director of the National Security Agency forcefully and emotionally rejected calls to curtail his agency’s power on Tuesday, as legislation to reform the US security services was introduced in Congress against the backdrop of a growing diplomatic crisis.” (from Elaine’s link above)
Ho, ho … hello chicken dinner circuit. “Tonight, ladies and gentlemen, we are honored to welcome General Alexander, former head of NSA and great admirer of Hollywood set designs, as our guest speaker. Now, set aside your Bingo cards and give him a warm welcome.”
Embattled NSA chief Keith Alexander rejects calls to limit agency’s power
Alexander goes before House committee and claims reports of NSA collecting millions of phone calls were ‘absolutely false’
Spencer Ackerman in Washington
theguardian.com, Tuesday 29 October 2013
http://www.theguardian.com/world/2013/oct/29/nsa-chief-keith-alexander-house-hearing
Excerpt:
The director of the National Security Agency forcefully and emotionally rejected calls to curtail his agency’s power on Tuesday, as legislation to reform the US security services was introduced in Congress against the backdrop of a growing diplomatic crisis.
General Keith Alexander, the director of the NSA, speaking “from the heart” before a Tuesday hearing of the House intelligence committee, said the NSA would prefer to “take the beatings” from the public and in the media “than to give up a program that would result in this nation being attacked.”
Alexander spoke hours after bills came before the House and Senate judiciary committees that would end the NSA’s bulk collection of Americans’ phone records, sponsored by Congressman James Sensenbrenner, a Wisconsin Republican, and Senator Patrick Leahy, a Vermont Democrat.
This nonsense about spying on other leaders and ourselves is nothing but a bunch of scraps thrown out to divert attention away from the real problems of this country. Look at all the yelping dogs, some with their own columns and some just like me, writing here. It is not that the US spies on Merkel, everybody spies on everybody. The US is the latest to be caught. Look back through the newspapers and you will eventually find articles on Israel spying on the US and everyone else, France poking its nose in here and there, GB doing the same. So, why the hubbub? Well, to take the focus away from what really counts: transitioning to a single payer health insurance administration using the governments like all the other intelligent lives on this earth, stopping or at least slowing down people like the Koch brothers from buying our governments, stopping the NRA from owning the judgeships that support them, etc.
What we really should be doing is working on the core problem, we do not have a democracy. We have an oligarchy. When we have a democracy we can then yelp all we want and maybe pull in the spies a little. Right now I would rather have the NSA spying on Merkel than not. Do you really believe that Germany is not spying on the US. Time to grow up people. We have much more important problems with this rudderless ship.
Issac wrote: “So, why the hubbub? Well, to take the focus away from what really counts: transitioning to a single payer health insurance administration…”
I hear what you are saying, but it also is interesting that the government mandated website for healthcare provides for absolutely no privacy of the information we provide them. We must agree to no privacy when we sign up. So they can legally share our social security number and all information, including what health care plan we sign up for. Identity thieves are probably salivating right now, and numerous companies are going to look for enticing ways to persuade the government to share that information for our good. This is simply too much government intrusion.
“NSA Surveillance Programs Live starting shortly:”
Washington, DC
Tuesday, October 29, 2013
“National Intelligence Director James Clapper testifies about the National Security Agency’s (NSA) surveillance program before a rare public hearing of the House Intelligence Committee.
The NSA has been back in the press recently after revelations that it spied on foreign leaders. Mr. Clapper will be joined by the Director and Deputy Director of the NSA in the first panel of the hearing.
The committee will also hear from former George W. Bush administration officials Steven Bradbury – who served in the Justice Department, and Stuart Baker – who served in the Homeland Security Department.
Legislators will question the intelligence officials about proposed changes to laws overseeing the NSA’s controversial metadata collection programs.”
http://www.c-span.org/Events/Intel-Officials-Discuss-Proposed-Changes-to-NSA-Spying-Programs/10737442346-1/
Otteray Scribe
1, October 29, 2013 at 11:02 am
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bet somebody just got added to the no-fly list
You missed your calling, A-hole…. you should be running Russia’s secret Police!
Some dogs put a GPS tracker on this schmucks car and followed him around to all the cathouses on C Street in DC. After he picked up his cash on K Street.
Nal,
He probably considers the oath to be “quaint”!
General Alexander clearly lives within a culture of secrecy and lack of boundaries.
I’m going to riff off mespo’s 11:10 am cookie jar metaphor and opine that Alexander once owned the cookie jar and was used to distributing said treats as he saw fit. Now people are reaching in and grabbing a cookie whenever they feel like it, but even worse, other agencies are taking advantage of his diminishing status and grabbing at the whole thing. The most powerful man in Washington, the man who could hire Hollywood set designers to build his offices, is going down and he needs to blame somebody ’cause such an ego cannot face its own demise. This is a story as old as mankind.
I wonder if he’ll be forced to hop on the chicken dinner circuit with ol’ Petraeus. Gotta rebuild the ego somehow.
Bron,
“. . . but since the MSM are all slavish, fawning sycophants for this administration . . .”
Just wake up from your administration nap, Bron? Say “hi” to Judith for me.
Perhaps action should be taken against Mr. Alexander. Did he not take an oath of office to defend & protect the Constitution of the United States, to do his job in accordance with the laws of this land?
Bron, I have been waiting for the MSM to go all Watergate but that just ain’t gonna happen. It would be racist.